Commander of Hungarian Defence Forces holds discussions in Germany

On Tuesday, the Commander of the Hungarian Defence Forces was received with military honors at the Federal Ministry of Defence of Germany, where he laid wreath at the monument of the German armed forces. In what followed, Lieutenant General Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi PhD met with General Eberhard Zorn, Inspector General of the Bundeswehr. During the meeting, the commander of the Hungarian Defence Forces said that Germany is a significant ally and designated strategic partner of Hungary. “Based on the centuries-long common history, the Hungarian–German friendship, the shared interests and personal ties, we were able to establish a multi-faceted cooperation in recent years”, added the commander.

Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi PhD said that we are glad that the German armed forces have provided immense support for the development of the Hungarian Defence Forces in the field of technical support for the new military equipment and the related training. The lieutenant general added that based on shared interests and personal ties, we were able to establish a multi-faceted cooperation in recent years, which is also demonstrated by the operation of joint ventures with Rheinmetall and Airbus in Hungary and the related successful training programs.

Speaking about the Russo-Ukrainian War, the commander of the Hungarian Defence Forces reasserted that Hungary condemns in the strongest possible terms the Russian attack against Ukraine, which has led to a humanitarian disaster. According to the lieutenant general, the North Atlantic Alliance must stay united; thus, Hungary also supports the decisions made by NATO and the European Union. The commander added that Hungary is concerned about the possible negative effects of the war in Ukraine on the security situation of the Western Balkans, and for this reason, in the present situation, the military presence of NATO and the EU is playing an especially important role in maintaining a safe environment in the region. At the same time, we still think that the only way to a permanent solution is the successful Euro-Atlantic integration of the Western Balkans, which would be a guarantee of regional stability and security, added Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi PhD.

The commander of the Hungarian Defence Forces said that Hungary welcomes the fact that Germany is increasing its defence expenditures, which is of key importance for Europe’s security. The two sides agreed that the European Commission needs to be supported in its efforts to find further financial incentives and new funding solutions for overcoming capability shortfalls. The main objective must be to eliminate shortfalls of those capabilities that are necessary for guaranteeing the security of the Euro-Atlantic region.

On the second day of his visit to Germany, the commander of the Hungarian Defence Forces visited the German army Combat Training Centre, where Centre Commandant Colonel Michael Knoke and Brigadier General Björn Schulz, Commandant of the German Armor School introduced the guests to the operation of the training and evaluation centres, as well as the training aids. In what followed, the Hungarian guests visited Übungsstadt Schnöggersburg, a practice town for military operations on urban terrain (MOUT). On the last day of the visit, the Hungarian delegation visited the Tank Driver School of the German army, where Brigadier General Björn Schulz informed the guests about the topical issues concerning the division, and then the commandant of the Tank Training and Simulation Centre held a presentation. During his visit to the centre, the commander of the Hungarian Defence Forces also met the Hungarian soldiers under training.

During his trip to Germany, the commander of the Hungarian Defence Forces and the government commissioner visited a Rheinmetall Defence Manufacturing Centre in Germany, where they were received by Alexander Sagel, Rheinmetall’s Head of Division Weapon and Ammunition and Paul Walf, Rheinmetall’s Head of Corporate Coordination Central Europe. During the visit, the guests were introduced to the manufacturing processes and the equipment that is already being manufactured for Hungary.